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Tensions in the South China Sea explained in 18 maps

Center for Strategic and International Studies

Mar. 11, 2016, 10:41 AM

ngoAn aerial photo taken though a glass window of a Philippine military

plane shows the alleged on-going land reclamation by China on mischief

reef in the Spratly Islands in the South China Sea, west of Palawan,

Philippines, May 11, 2015.

The Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative, partners of the Center

for Strategic and International Studies, is an interactive, regularly-

updated source for information, analysis, and policy exchange on

maritime security issues in Asia.

Below are 18 republished maps from their report (and here is the

full analysis and methodology).

1. A Political Map

The Indo-Pacific region consists of over 20 countries. It spans from

Russia in the North to Australia and New Zealand in the South, and from

India in the West to Papua New Guinea in the East.

2. Population in Asia

Asia is a vibrant and dynamic region with 4.3 billion inhabitants -- 60%

of the global population. China is the most populous state in the region

with 1.4 billion people. India is projected to pass China’s population in

about 15 years, becoming the world’s most populous nation with 1.5

billion inhabitants.

3. Trade Routes and Straits

Over half of the world's commercial shipping passes through the

waterways of the Indo-Pacific region. The Strait of Malacca, in particular,

is one of the most important shipping lanes in the world.

The strait links the Indian and Pacific Oceans and carries approximately

25% of all traded goods. It also carries approximately 25% of all oil that

travels by sea. At its narrowest point just south of Singapore, the Strait of

Malacca is only 1.5 nautical miles wide, making it one of the world's most

noteworthy strategic choke points.

4. South China Sea LNG Flows

One-third of the world’s liquefied natural gas passes through the Straits

of Malacca and into the South China Sea, with the bulk of it originating

in the Persian Gulf. LNG also flows into the region from Southeast Asia

and Oceania. Much of this imported LNG is bound for Japan and South

Korea.

5. Natural Resources in the South China Sea

The South China Sea contains significant proved and probable oil

reserves, and countries in the region are eager to extract these.

Particularly large quantities lie in the EEZs of Vietnam, Malaysia, and

the Philippines. The East China Sea is also home to a gas field, but the

extent of its reserves are unknown.

6. Trade Flows In Asia

In addition to providing passage for incoming commodities, the states of

Maritime Asia also have deeply interdependent trade relations among

themselves.

China and ASEAN (Southeast Asia), China and Japan, and Japan and

ASEAN states have robust trade relations. The China-ASEAN trade

relationship is especially strong.

7. TPP and RCEP Membership

There are currently two free trade agreements under negotiation in East

Asia. At present, Trans Pacific Partnership negotiating partners include

Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand,

Peru, Singapore, the United States, and Vietnam.

The Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership negotiating

partners include Australia, China, India, Japan, Korea, New Zealand,

and all ASEAN member states. These two agreements, and the fact that

some countries (Australia, New Zealand, Brunei, Japan, Malaysia and

Singapore) are party to both, illustrates the dense economic

interdependence of the region.

8. Multilateral Memberships

There are numerous multilateral fora in the region, and Asian nations

vary substantially in their participation in these organizations. China,

Japan, South Korea, and Australia are the most participatory states in

the region when it comes to multinational fora.

9. UN Convention on the Law of the Sea

Most nations in maritime Asia have signed and ratified the 1982 UN

Conventional on the Law of the Sea. UNCLOS defines the rights and

responsibilities of nations with respect to the world’s oceans,

establishing guidelines for the use of natural resources, the environment,

and for commercial affairs. UNCLOS entered into force in 1994.

The United States of America is not a signatory to the treaty, although it

follows its provisions as customary international law.

10. Exclusive Economic Zones

Under the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, coastal states may

claim an “Exclusive Economic Zone” of up to 200 nautical miles. States

have the sole rights to natural resource extraction within their own EEZs,

but must also allow innocent passage through these zones according to

UNCLOS. Because of their proximity, some states in maritime Asia claim

EEZs that are overlapping.

The South China Sea is the site of several ongoing EEZ disputes between

neighbors. Further north, Japan, China and South Korea also have EEZ

boundary disputes. In areas shaded in yellow, however, states have

agreed to jointly fish or develop an area despite an ongoing EEZ dispute.

11. Territorial Controls

The fact that a country claims a particular territory does not, however,

mean that it controls it. Some countries have physical control over many

of the islands that they claim, while others do not.

Five different countries control some land features in the Spratly Islands,

while just one state controls the Kuril Islands, Liancourt Rocks, Senkaku

Islands, and Paracel Islands.

12. The Nine-Dash Line

One unique claim is China’s Nine-Dash Line, which depicts Beijing’s

claims in the South China Sea. The map originally contained 11 dashes

and was issued by the Nationalist Chinese government in 1947. The

Communist government adopted it when it took power in 1949, and later

dropped two dashes to allow China and Vietnam to settle their claims in

the Gulf of Tonkin.

The Nine-Dash Line encompasses much of the South China Sea, but

Beijing has not clarified whether it is making territorial claims on the

land features inside this line or whether it is asserting maritime rights as

well. In 2014, Beijing released a new map that featured an additional

10th dash to the east of Taiwan. Because it predates UNCLOS by several

decades, the Nine-Dash Line is unrelated to an EEZ claim.

13. Air Defense Identification Zones

Several states in Maritime Asia have declared Air Defense Identification

Zones. This includes India, China, Japan, Russia, South Korea, North

Korea, and Taiwan. An ADIZ is an identified area of airspace extending

beyond a national boundary in which civilian aircraft are required to

identify themselves and may be subject to interception for that country’s

national security.

There are no international agreements or laws that govern the use of

ADIZs: they are zones that individual countries establish for their own

safety and security. The United States established the first ADIZ shortly

after World War II.

Although ADIZs may generally increase transparency and reduce the risk

of accidents, several countries in East Asia have overlapping ADIZs.

China’s East China Sea ADIZ, declared in 2013, also includes two pieces

of disputed territory. According to the Convention on International Civil

Aviation, states have sovereignty over the airspace over their territory,

including territorial waters. Air Defense Identification Zones do not,

however, confer any sovereign rights.

14. Maritime Hotspots

In the last several decades there have been multiple interstate

incidents—vehicle collisions, armed clashes, close military encounters

and other standoffs—in maritime Asia. Incidents have clustered around

the Spratly Islands, Paracel Islands and Scarborough Shoal in the South

China Sea, the Senkaku Islands in the East China Sea, and the Northern

Limit Line in the Yellow Sea.

Other hotspots include the Kuril Islands in the Northern Pacific, and the

Liancourt Rocks in the Sea of Japan. This raises concern that these could

be the sites of serious accidents or potential flashpoints for escalation in

the future.

15. Asian Military Budgets

Asian militaries also vary significantly in terms of spending as a

percentage of GDP. According to this metric, Russia and Myanmar are

the biggest spenders in the region, spending between four and five

percent of GDP on defense.

China, Vietnam, and South Korea are next, spending between three and

four percent. Japan, the Philippines, Australia and Malaysia spend just

one to two percent of GDP on their militaries, while most of South East

Asia spends less than one percent.

16. Asian Military Personnel

The strength of the militaries of countries in maritime Asia varies

significantly, as demonstrated by the significant disparities in their

numbers of army, navy, and air force personnel.

China, India, and North Korea each field over 1 million ground troops,

and Russia has nearly that number on its Eastern Front alone. China also

has the highest numbers of air force and navy personnel by far.

Brunei, in contrast, boasts the lowest numbers of armed forces with

fewer than 5,000 ground troops and approximately 1,000 navy and air

force personnel.

17. US Military Personnel in East Asia

The US military has long maintained a significant, standing forward

presence in the Indo-Pacific and maintains ground, air, naval, and

marine assets in many Asian countries. Its most significant troop

presence is in South Korea and Japan. It has also recently established a

rotational military presence with some Pacific partners, including the

Philippines and Australia.

US assets and personnel deployed in Hawaii, Alaska, and Guam, are also

devoted to the safety and security of the region.

18. Trade and Resources in the Indian Ocean

The Indian Ocean is not the site of nearly as many territorial or maritime

disputes, but it is nonetheless inseparable Pacific assets and interests.

Eighty percent of Japanese and 39 percent of Chinese oil imports pass

through the Indian Ocean en route from the Middle East. Chinese firms

also have billions of dollars of investments in East Africa, concentrated

primarily in the oil and gas, railways and roads, and other mining

sectors.

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